Bulletin board assembly

ABSTRACT

A bulletin board assembly includes a perforated bulletin board and mounting devices removably attachable to said perforated board for hanging objects thereon. Each mounting device includes a base having one or more pegs projecting therefrom and sized to be inserted with a friction fit within the perforations on said board. A pin also projects from said base for piercing and impaling the object to be hung. The pin is so located on said base as to pass freely through the center of one of the perforations when the peg is inserted in another of the perforations.

United States Patent 1191 Levko 1 BULLETIN BOARD ASSEMBLY [76] Inventor:Leo Levko, 146 W. 79th St., New

York, NY. 10024 22 Filed: Dec. 1, 1972 211 Appl. No.: 311,327

[52] U.S. Cl. 211/89, 211/57 [51] Int. Cl. A47f 5/08 [58] Field ofSearch 211/89, 54, 57, 59;

248/DIG. 3; 24/153 R, 87 R, 67 R, 73 PF; 40/20 A, 143; 160/398, 404

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 721,424 2/1903 Clark 211/591,696,551 12/1928 Morden et a1. 211/57 3,067,536 12/1962 Brittsan 1.24/73 PF UX 3,089,269 5/1963 McKiernan 24/73 PF UX 3,091,423 5/1963Butterworth 248/DIG. 3 X 3,497,079 2/1970 Kulwiec 248/DIG. 3 X

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 797,732 7/1958 Great Britain 248/DIG. 3

1 Jan. 7, 1975 597,675 1/1948 GrcatBritain ..211/57 7/1953 France..40/143 Primary ExaminerRoy D. Frazier Assistant ExaminerThomas J.Holko Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Edward F. Levy [57] ABSTRACT A bulletinboard assembly includes a perforated bulletin board and mounting devicesremovably attachable to'said perforated board for hanging objectsthereon. Each mounting device includes a base having one or more pegsprojecting therefrom and sized to be inserted with a friction fit withinthe perforations on said board. A pin also projects from said base forpiercing and impaling the object to be hung. The pin is so located onsaid base as to pass freely through the center of one of theperforations when the peg is inserted in another of the perforations.

9 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJAN 11915 3,858,727

oooooq "W" Fm. V 72 BULLETIN BOARD ASSEMBLY The present inventionrelates to improvements in sheet-mounting devices, and more particularlyto a novel and improved device for mounting paper sheets and the like onbulletin boards.

The conventional bulletin board comprises a panel of cork, fibre-board,or other easily-penetrable material, upon which paper sheets, cards orthe like are hung by means of a tack or pin which pierces the papersheet and is embedded in the panel of the bulletin board. Because thepanel is made of a relatively soft, penetrable material, it is an easymatter for the user to mount a sheet or card thereon and also to removeit when desired. However, over a period of time, as sheets are mountedand removed from the board, the panels are repeatedly pierced by thetacks, causing mutilation of the board and its inability to hold thetacks.

Hard-wood perforated peg boards are in common use today for the purposeof hanging tools, displays, and the like. These perforated boards areadapted to receive pegs and hooks in the perforations for hangingarticles thereon, but such boards are not suitable to be used asbulletin boards because their hard surfaces are not readily penetrableby tacks or sharp-pointed pins, and the perforations therein are toolarge to retain the thin pins or tacks.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a hard-surface,perforated bulletin board and mounting devices constructed to be usedwith said board for mounting paper sheets or similar objects thereon.Each of the mounting devices has one or more pegs which fit snugly intoperforations of the bulletin board for mounting the devices thereon, anda pin so located on the mounting device as to be guided freely throughanother of the perforations when the peg is inserted.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a bulletinboard'assembly of the character described in which the mounting devicesmay be inserted and removed during continual use without damaging ormutilating the board.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a bulletin boardassembly of the character described which is adapted to hang objectssecurely thereon regardless of the weight of the object.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a bulletin boardassembly which is economical in manufacture, simple and convenient touse, effective for mounting papers or other objects, and is light inweight.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentduring the course of the following specification when taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bulletin board made in accordance withthe present invention, with a portion of the board broken away forconvenience of illustration;

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a portion of modified type of bulletinboard, with a mounting device of the invention attached thereto andholding a sheet of pa- FIG. 2 is a perspective view, on an enlargedscale, of a mounting device made in accordance with the invention foruse with the bulletin boards of FIGS. 1 and 1A;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a portion of the bulletin board ofFIG. 1 and the manner in which the mounting device is inserted thereon,a portion of the mounting device being broken away;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged section taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a modified type of mountingdevice;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another modified type of mountingdevice; and

FIG. 7 is a partial plan view of a bulletin board having perforationsshaped to receive the mounting device of FIG. 6.

Referring in detail to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a bulletinboard 10 made in accordance with the present invention, and comprising aperforated panel 12 which cooperates with the mounting devices to bepresently described. The panel 12 is made of a rigid material such assheet metal, rigid plastic, composition board or the like,'and may behung on a wall surface, provided with an easel for standing on a desk,or the like. In the preferred form shown in FIG. 1, the panel 12 is madeintegral with or is mounted upon a rectangular frame 14 which terminatesin a perpendicular peripheral flange 16 having small openings 17 formedtherein for mounting the flange 16 flush against a wall surface by meansof nails or tacks inserted through said openings 17. The walls of frame14 are made of such width as to space the front panel 12 from the wallsurface by a sufficient distance to enable a mounting device, of thetype hereinafter described, to be inserted in the perforations of thefront panel.

The front panel 12 is formed with a plurality of spaced circularperforations 18 which cover substantially the entire area of said panel.These perforations are aligned in horizontal rows and vertical columnsin selected arrangements, as will be presently described.

FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of a mounting device 20 constructedto be used with a perforated bulletin board of the type shown in FIG. 1in order to mount a sheet of paper or the like on said bulletin board.The mounting device 20 comprises a flat base 22 having a pair ofcylindrical pegs 24 and 26 projecting perpendicularly from one surfacethereof, and a sharp-pointed pin or tack 28 projecting perpendicularlyfrom the same surface.

The base 22 is made of a rigid material such as plas tic, metal, or thelike, and may have any desired shape, although in its preferred form itis made of the rounded, generally triangular shape illustrated, for easeof handling and for convenient visual orientation in mounting the device20 on the perforated board. The base 22 may also be made circular, oval,ring-shaped, or of selected irregular shapes, providing sufficient areais provided to properly locate the pegs 24, 26 and pin 28 thereon.

The pegs 24 and 26 are spaced transversely of each other along a lineextending proximate to and substantially parallel to the top wall of thetriangular base 22. The pin 28 is located well below this line and islocated midway between the spaced pegs 24 and 26, proximate to the lowerapex of the base 22. The pegs 24, 26 and the pin 28 thus form aninverted isosceles triangle.

In the embodiment of the bulletin board 10 shown in FIG. 1, it will beseen that the perforations 18 are arranged in horizontal rows 30 andthat the perforations in each of these horizontal rows are evenly spacedfrom each other by relatively short distances. The perforations 18 ineach of the horizontal rows 30 are also aligned with the correspondingperforations of the other horizontal rows to form vertical columns 32.The spacing between adjacent perforations in each vertical column 32 isequal to'the spacing between adjacent perforations in each horizontalrow. The vertical and horizontal distances between perforations are suchthat the pegs 24 and 26 of mounting device 20 may be insertedsimultaneously in two alternate perforations 18 (Le, perforations spacedapart by a single perforation) and the pin 28 will then automaticallyextend centrally through the perforation of the next adjacent row orcolumn, which perforation is located centrally between said alternateperforations. The mounting device 20 may therefore be mounted on thepanel 12 in the upright vertical position shown in FIG. 3, or it may beinverted, or turned 90 to a horizontal position for mounting.

The pegs 24 and 26 are sized for insertion through the perforations l8and-may be made of such diameter as to fit snugly within theperforations and make a tight friction fit therewith. As an alternative,the pegs may be made of smaller diameter but mounted on device 20 so asto diverge away from each other and thereby make a frictional fit withthe pair of perforations into which they are inserted. Thus, when themounting device 20 is mounted on the bulletin board 10, the friction fitof the pegs within the perforations prevent the mounting device 20 fromworking loose and falling off the board, regardless of the weight of thesheet or other item which the mounting device is supporting. Tofacilitate insertion of the pegs 24 and 26 within the perforations 18,the pegs may be provided with tapered or rounded ends 34.

In use of the device 20 for mounting an object, for example a sheet ofpaper 36 on the board 10, the paper sheet 36 is first placed in itsdesired position against the front surface of panel 12 with its top edgelocated between adjacent horizontal rows 30 of perforations 18. With thesheet 36 held in this position, the mounting device 20 is broughtagainst the surface of the front panel 12 and the pegs 24 and 26inserted into alternate perforations 18a and 18b in the horizontal rowimmediately above the top edge of sheet 36, as shown in FIG. 3. Thisautomatically positions the pin 28 in registry with the perforation 18ccentered between the alternate perforations and in the horizontal rowimmediately therebeneath. As the pegs 24 and 26 are pressed into theperforations 18a and 18b the pin 28 pierces the paper sheet 36 andenters the centered perforation18c.

While the pegs 24 and 26 are made of substantially the same diameter asthe perforations 18, the pin 28 is of appreciably smaller diameter andis positioned to pass centrally through the perforation into which it isinserted. Thus the pin 28 does not puncture the board front panel, and,in fact never comes into contact with said panel, so that the board maybe subjected to constant use without wear or damage.

The base 22 may be formed with a large central opening 38 whichdecreases the weight and bulk of the base, and provides a window to aidin visually aligning the pegs with the perforations and visuallysighting the paper sheet to be hung.

FIG. 1A shows a modified embodiment of bulletin board 40 which may beused with the same mounting devices 20. The board 40 has a frame 14 andflange 16 identical to those of board previously described. The frontpanel 42 is identical to the front panel 12, ex-

cept that the perforations 44 therein are arranged in a differentpattern. These perforations are aligned in horizontal rows 46, but eachperforation in one horizontal row is offset centrally between a pair ofperforations in the adjacent rows. Thus, corresponding perforationsofalternate horizontal rows are aligned to form vertical columns 48. Itwill be seen in FIG. 1A that the pegs 24 and 26 may be inserted in anypair of adjacent perforations 44 in a horizontal row or vertical columnand the pin 28 will automatically be guided through the centrally offsetperforation of the adjacent row or column.

FIG. 4 shows'the mounting device 20 in fully inserted position in theboard 40 with the base engaging or lying close against the outer surfaceof front panel 42, and the paper sheet 36 impaled upon the pin 28 andbeing pressed between the base 22 and the outer panel surface. Theinserted pegs 24 and 26 and the pin 2 project a substantial distancebeyond the rear surface of front panel 42, but do not contact the wallsurface upon which the bulletin board is mounted because of the width offrame 14. The paper sheet 36 is held in mounted position by virtue ofbeing impaled on the pin 28, and is additionally held firmly by beingpressed between a large area of the base 22 and the surface of panel 42.

FIG. 5 illustrates another embodiment of mounting device 50, which inthis instance has a narrow elongated body 52 from which project a pairof pegs 54, 56 and a pin 58. The pegs 54, 56 and the pin 58 are arrangedin a straight line along the longitudinal axis of the elongated body 52,and are spaced apart by distances corresponding to the vertical spacingbetween perforations in the vertical columns of boards 10 or 40. In use,when the body 52 is held vertically or horizontally and the pegs 54 and56 are inserted into two adjacent perforations of any vertical column orhorizontal row the pin 58 will automatically enter the next succeedingperforation of the same column or row. The device 50 therefore providesthe same advantage as the previously described device 20, namely,insertion of the pegs 54 and 56 into two selected perforations willautomatically guide the pin 58 accurately through the center of a thirdperforation, even though the latter perforation is covered by the papersheet and cannot be seen by the user.

FIG. 6 shows a further modified form of mounting device 60 in which asingle peg 62 is employed to mount the device on a perforated board andalso to guide the pin 64 accurately into one of the board perforations.In this instance, the peg 62 is formed with a non-circularcross-section, for example, the square cross-section shown in FIG. 6.FIG. 7 shows a portion of bulletin board front panel formed with squareperforations 72 sized to receive snugly the square peg 62 of device 60.The peg 62 and pin 64 are spaced along the elongated body 66 of device60 by a distance corresponding to the vertical spacing of perforations72 in the bulletin board front panel 70.

With the mounting device 60 held vertically or horizontally, the peg 62is inserted into one of the noncircular perforations 72 of the bulletinboard panel 70. Because the non-circular shape of the peg exactlymatches that of the perforation, the mounting device body 66 is orientedto a position in which the pin 64 registers with the center of anotherperforation 72 and the device is mounted to support a sheet of paper orthe like in the manner previously described.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed herein, it is obvious that numerous omissions, changes andadditions may be made in such embodiments without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A bulletin board assembly comprising a'bulletin board having a rigidpanel and a plurality of perforations formed in said panel and arrangedin a uniform pattern of evenly spaced perforations and a mounting deviceadapted to be removably mounted on said bulletin board for impaling anobject and supporting said object thereon, said mounting deviceincluding a rigid body member having a flat surface, a sharp-pointed pinproje ctifi perperidicularly from said flat surface, and at least onepeg projecting perpendicularly from said flat surface and spaced fromsaid pin, said peg being sized for insertion through a selectedperforation on said panel with a friction fit therein for attaching saidmounting device onsaid panel, said pin being of lesser thickness thansaid peg and being located on said body member at such a position thatsaid pin registers with another perforation in said panel when said pegis inserted in said selected perforation and said mounting device ispressed inwardly toward said board, whereby' said pin will pass freelyand centrally through said other perforation with the body of said pinout of engagement with the body of said panel.

2. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 1 in which saidperforations are arranged on said panel in horizontal rows ofequally-spaced perforations and vertical columns of equally-spacedperforations.

3. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 2 in which said rows andcolumns of perforations are arranged to receive all projecting parts ofsad mounting device when the latter is disposed horizontally andvertically.

4. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 2 in which said mountingdevice includes a pair of pegs projecting perpendicularly from said flatsurface, said pegs being spaced from each other by a distancecorresponding to the spacing between perforations on said panel, wherebysaid pegs are positioned for simultaneous insertion within two selectedperforations, said pin being so located with relation to said pegs thatsaid pin is oriented to pass freely through another perforations in saidpanel when said pair of pegs are inserted into said selectedperforations.

5. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 4 in which said pair ofpegs and said pin are arranged in a straight line on the flat surface ofsaid body member.

6. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 4 in which said pair ofpegs and said pin are arranged in a triangular relationship on the flatsurface of said body member.

7. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 6 in which said pair ofpegs are mounted on said body member along a common line and are spacedapart a sufficient distance to be inserted simultaneously within twoperforations in one of said horizontal rows, said pin being located toextend centrally through a third perforation in another horizontal row.

8. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 6 in which said pair ofpegs are mounted on said body along a common line and are spaced apart asufficient distance to be inserted simultaneously within twoperforations in one of said vertical columns, said pin being located toextend centrally through a third perforation in another vertical column.

9. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 1 in which said bulletinboard also includes a hollow frame mounting said panel, and means formounting said frame on a wall surface, said frame being of sufficientsize to space said perforated panel from said wall surface by a distancegreater than the length of said pin and said peg.

1. A bulletin board assembly comprising a bulletin board having a rigidpanel and a plurality of perforations formed in said panel and arrangedin a uniform pattern of evenly spaced perforations and a mounting deviceadapted to be removably mounted on said bulletin board for impaling anobject and supporting said object thereon, said mounting deviceincluding a rigid body member having a flat surface, a sharppointed pinprojecting perpendicularly from said flat surface, and at least one pegprojecting perpendicularly from said flat surface and spaced from saidpin, said peg being sized for insertion through a selected perforationon said panel with a friction fit therein for attaching said mountingdevice on said panel, said pin being of lesser thickness than said pegand being located on said body meMber at such a position that said pinregisters with another perforation in said panel when said peg isinserted in said selected perforation and said mounting device ispressed inwardly toward said board, whereby said pin will pass freelyand centrally through said other perforation with the body of said pinout of engagement with the body of said panel.
 2. A bulletin boardassembly according to claim 1 in which said perforations are arranged onsaid panel in horizontal rows of equally-spaced perforations andvertical columns of equally-spaced perforations.
 3. A bulletin boardassembly according to claim 2 in which said rows and columns ofperforations are arranged to receive all projecting parts of sadmounting device when the latter is disposed horizontally and vertically.4. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 2 in which said mountingdevice includes a pair of pegs projecting perpendicularly from said flatsurface, said pegs being spaced from each other by a distancecorresponding to the spacing between perforations on said panel, wherebysaid pegs are positioned for simultaneous insertion within two selectedperforations, said pin being so located with relation to said pegs thatsaid pin is oriented to pass freely through another perforations in saidpanel when said pair of pegs are inserted into said selectedperforations.
 5. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 4 in whichsaid pair of pegs and said pin are arranged in a straight line on theflat surface of said body member.
 6. A bulletin board assembly accordingto claim 4 in which said pair of pegs and said pin are arranged in atriangular relationship on the flat surface of said body member.
 7. Abulletin board assembly according to claim 6 in which said pair of pegsare mounted on said body member along a common line and are spaced aparta sufficient distance to be inserted simultaneously within twoperforations in one of said horizontal rows, said pin being located toextend centrally through a third perforation in another horizontal row.8. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 6 in which said pair ofpegs are mounted on said body along a common line and are spaced apart asufficient distance to be inserted simultaneously within twoperforations in one of said vertical columns, said pin being located toextend centrally through a third perforation in another vertical column.9. A bulletin board assembly according to claim 1 in which said bulletinboard also includes a hollow frame mounting said panel, and means formounting said frame on a wall surface, said frame being of sufficientsize to space said perforated panel from said wall surface by a distancegreater than the length of said pin and said peg.